Chile, Colombia reach Copa quarter-finals

Chile and hosts Colombia reached the quarter-finals of the devalued Copa America tournament on Saturday with 1-0 wins over Venezuela…

Chile and hosts Colombia reached the quarter-finals of the devalued Copa America tournament on Saturday with 1-0 wins over Venezuela and Ecuador respectively.

Christian Montecinos scored his third goal of the competition in the 79th minute to give Chile a lucky win over minnows Venezuela.

Colombia's victory in the match which followed came courtesy of a close-range effort from Victor Hugo Aristizabal after half an hour.

Both teams have a maximum six points from two games in group A. Ecuador and Venezuela, who meet Monday, are both without points, though one of them could still go through as one of the best third-placed teams.

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Most teams are taking part without their top players due to fixture congestion and chaotic organisation by the South American Football Confederation, which staged the tournament at six day's notice after earlier postponing it until next year.

Argentina, the continent's strongest team, have pulled out altogether.